Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) Shares Acquired by Kestra Investment Management LLC

Kestra Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) by 44.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,804 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,473 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC's holdings in Air Products and Chemicals were worth $1,393,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,874,347 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,448,570,000 after purchasing an additional 88,806 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 29,954.1% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,894,211 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $861,722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,884,581 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 3.9% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,867,290 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $555,967,000 after purchasing an additional 70,759 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.2% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,633,381 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $486,343,000 after purchasing an additional 19,209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,249,142 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $371,920,000 after purchasing an additional 14,077 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Air Products and Chemicals news, VP Sean D. Major sold 4,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.46, for a total transaction of $1,419,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,273 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,502,560.58. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Kurt Lefevere sold 1,500 shares of Air Products and Chemicals stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.17, for a total value of $474,255.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,462 shares of the company's stock, valued at $462,240.54. The trade was a 50.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,911 shares of company stock valued at $4,660,897 over the last quarter. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Air Products and Chemicals Trading Down 1.4 %

Air Products and Chemicals stock traded down $4.26 during trading on Friday, reaching $310.02. 1,392,858 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,750,034. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $308.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $304.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company has a market capitalization of $68.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.00, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.85. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $227.10 and a 52-week high of $341.14.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.13 by ($0.27). Air Products and Chemicals had a return on equity of 15.78% and a net margin of 31.88%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 12.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Products and Chemicals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is a boost from Air Products and Chemicals's previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on APD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $320.00 price target (down previously from $345.00) on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $330.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. BNP Paribas upgraded Air Products and Chemicals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America downgraded Air Products and Chemicals from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $350.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Air Products and Chemicals from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $339.94.

Air Products and Chemicals Profile

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc provides atmospheric gases, process and specialty gases, equipment, and related services in the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, India, and internationally. The company produces atmospheric gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, and argon; process gases, such as hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and syngas; and specialty gases for customers in various industries, including refining, chemical, manufacturing, electronics, energy production, medical, food, and metals.